A place for a tired old woman to try to figure things out so that the world makes a bit of sense.

Thursday, May 18, 2006

On the Other Side of the Fence

I can't help thinking that the Emperor's announcement on Monday that he would favor using the National Guard to patrol the Mexican border was nothing more than a slab of red meat thrown in the direction of those in Congress who don't want any immigration, legal or otherwise, coming from Latin America. Mr. Bush wants a Guest Worker program because big business has made it clear it needs the cheap labor, so an immigration bill has to pass. If placating the Tancredos and Sensenbrenners is neccessary for that, then the Emperor will satisfy them by militarizing the border.

Our neighbors to the south, however, are clearly not happy with that step, as noted in a recent article in the NY Times

Putting National Guard troops on the border, some political analysts said, was just the latest in a long series of moves by the Bush administration to underscore how dramatically different the United States and Mexico see illegal immigration.

The deployment, Peter Hakim of the Inter-American Dialogue said, sends a message that Mr. Bush has bowed to pressure from the most conservative leaders in the Republican Party to make border policy without regard for Mexico's interests.

It also sends a message, other political analysts said, that the United States views immigrants as a military threat.

"We are not stupid," Jorge Montaño, a former ambassador to the United States, said. "The United States did not send the National Guard to Iraq for logistical purposes. This is a de facto militarization of the border and an unprecedented insult in relations between the two countries." [Emphasis added]

Once again the current regime has put its collective foot in it by not considering the repercussions of any particular move. For one thing, Mexico is in the midst of an election campaign. The candidate for President from Mr. Fox's party had a slight lead prior to the Bush announcement, but it was anticipated that the lead would grow. Mr. Fox is considered an ally of the Bush administration, and this move is viewed as a slap in the face of Mr. Fox as well as the entire nation of Mexico.

The opposition candidate, viewed as a populist, has just been handed a golden issue. In other words, our regime may very well be tilting the Mexican election toward a candidate who just might turn out to be another Evo Morales.

Hello? We import a lot of oil from Mexico. Is no one in the regime paying any attention?